Harry Potter 7
by Ktobin
Summary: I hate to admit that I really despised the last book after reading the entire series, so I've decided to write it myself instead!
1. Correspondance

The summer rain pelted onto the windows as a young sixteen year old boy scanned the street outside him. This boy's name was Harry Potter and he lived with his Uncle Vernon, Aunt Petunia and cousin Dudley Dursley in Little Whingham, which he considered one of the dullest places to reside in England. He hated his relatives, but his parents had died when he was only one, so he was forced to stay with them.

Tonight however wasn't as dull as usual and Harry had a bad feeling that something terrible was about to happen. He glanced around his room nervously as if someone was about to appear on the carpet. _Don't be an idiot_, he told himself sharply as he turned back to his desk where he was writing a reply to his best friend Ron.

Harry and Ron were both wizards, along with many other people in the world. This unknown to Muggles (a term for non-magical people) and as the wizarding world were not eager to enlighten them, it was probably going to stay that way.

Sometimes Muggles would have magical children, and upon receiving a letter from a wizarding school, their family would be brought into the magical world. This was often a very difficult process. These children were despised by 'pureblood' wizards, who believed that only pureblood wizards should obtain magic, and thus these wizards invented the term Mudblood.

Wizards, and witches, had to be taught how to control their magical abilities and Harry was no exception. He attended Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry, along with Ron and his other best friend Hermione.

A few hours previously, a tiny owl had flown into his window noisily with a letter from Ron and Hermionie, two separate rolls of parchment that brightened up the prospect of staying with the Dursleys for another day.

_Harry, are you still coming the wedding tomorrow? Fleur asked me to make sure. Mum says that she's sure you aren't being fed well so she's been cooking since this morning! See you tomorrow!_

_Ron_

Ron's letter had been very short but it was evident that he had re-written it a few times before sending it. Harry wondered how he was coping since the events during the last term.

Harry had forced himself to believe that Dumbledore was actually gone, and not actually on holiday somewhere. The hardest thing to believe was that he was not going to return to Hogwarts and see Dumbledore smile down at him during the feast at the beginning of term.

He picked up Hermionie's letter and read through it again.

_Dear Harry,_

_I do hope that the Dursleys are treating you fine and that I'll get to see you tomorrow._

_I was actually wondering whether you had any ideas on where to begin your search for you-know-what. I won't say it in case of interception of this owl. But I have something to show you that may interest you tomorrow._

_Hermione_

Harry was glad that neither of his friends had mentioned Dumbledore yet, as he wasn't sure how he himself would take to hearing his old headmaster's name in a conversation or a letter. But he was sure that he would hear the name at some point tomorrow, and he couldn't do anything about that.

He had pondered over what to do and what to say if the matter did pop up and reached a decision. Dumbledore would have wanted him to trust his friends and tell them everything and he thought that Dumbledore would want him to talk to them about this too. Harry had finally decided that he would talk to Ron and Hermione about Dumbledore tomorrow. At the wedding.

As he heard Dudley snore loudly from his room next door Harry glanced at his watch, it was half past one in the morning. He decided to quickly finish his letter and go to bed.

_Dear Ron,_

_I am still coming tomorrow._

_Harry_

Harry doubted Ron would mind that his reply was so short but felt a pang of guilt as he looked at his longer reply to Hermione. He shook it off as he opened Hedwig's cage and tied the letters to her leg. "Take this to the Burrow for me will you?" Hedwig hooted happily to him as she spread her wings and flew out the window.

Momentarily distracted by his lamp flickering Harry allowed himself to watch her fly away. As he got ready for bed, he thought he could hear her hooting in the distance.


	2. Leaving 'Home'

**Chapter 2 - Leaving Home**

The next morning Harry awoke to sounds of rage. "Where is that boy? Has he even woken up yet? The ungrateful little-" Uncle Vernon's voice echoed up the stairs and Harry leaped out of bed. He dressed quickly and looked at himself in the mirror before leaving his room.

He hadn't appreciated how much he had grown since his last birthday. He was taller, his hair was longer and messier, but his biggest change was in his 'mother's' eyes. He had seen some terrible things since then and by looking in his eyes it was easy to guess that.

"GET DOWN HERE NOW BOY!" Harry smirked and strolled downstairs casually. Uncle Vernon's face was purple and the veins in his head were clearly throbbing. He was holding a letter in his hand and was glaring at Harry.

"A letter just arrived. From one of those ruddy owls!"

Harry failed to understand why this was so terrible until he remembered that the Dursleys hated owls and anything magical. With difficulty, he held back a laugh.

"I thought I told you that you aren't allowed to give this address to any of your...friends." Uncle Vernon continued angrily and ignoring Harry's amused grin.

Harry almost mentioned how close his uncle had come to saying the word 'wizard' and then remembered that he was 'in trouble'. But he was seventeen today and of age in the wizarding world. He was leaving the Dursleys today.

"If you don't mind, I'd like to have my letter." He asked simply.

Uncle Vernon was shocked but meekly handed Harry the letter and watched as he opened it without even thanking him.

_Dear Mr H Potter,_

_The Minister of Magic has invited you to dinner at 'The Fancy Hippogriff' on the 13th of August. Please respond to this request a week in advance for the Minister to book the place in advance. Thank you._

_Yours Sincerely,_

_ Dolores Umbridge_

_ Head Secretary _

Harry was confused. What could Scrimgeor possibly want with him? Did he not actually realize yet that Harry wouldn't work for him? He was getting rather annoyed with the constant badgering and resolved to refuse less politely this time. The anger must have shown on his face because Uncle Vernon said, "Bad news?" Harry looked up.

His uncle was grinning at him, happy to have got his revenge. Harry nodded truthfully and felt a strange urge to confide in him. "Yes actually. Very bad. The Minister of Magic has invited me to dinner."

Uncle Vernon thought carefully before answering and replied slowly, "Wouldn't he be important?" Harry was shocked but answered him. "Yeah. But he wants me to tell everyone that the Ministry is doing a great job with Voldemort." Uncle Vernon replied quickly. "So they aren't?" The look on Harry's face answered that question. His uncle looked vaguely fearful but Harry was concerned about his uncle's sudden interest in the magical world.

"Why do you care?" His curiosity was aroused so he stuffed the letter into his pocket and turned his attention to his uncle. Uncle Vernon had _hated_ the magical world. He had forbidden any mention of it in his house, until one night where Harry had to explain about Voldemort being back.

"I heard about Dubbledore dying - on the news."

Harry almost choked with emotion at the mention of his old headmaster's name.

" On Mug- your news?" Uncle Vernon shook his head and said, "They just mentioned that a man called Albus Bubbledore had died...and I remembered the name from, that giant man ages ago..."

Harry knew they were both remembering Hogwart's gamekeeper Rubeus Hagrid giving Harry his letter of acceptance to Hogwarts. But neither Uncle Vernon nor Harry dwelled on this embarrassing memory for long.

Harry stole a glance at the clock on the wall of the kitchen and it suddenly hit him that he was never going to be in this house again. But this was a cheering thought so he just looked Uncle Vernon in the eye and said quite plainly, "Goodbye. And thank you I suppose." He turned on his heel and apparated out of the kitchen up to his room.

Downstairs, Uncle Vernon knocked over a coffee cup in the shock of Harry's sudden disappearance.

Upstairs, Harry packed his few belongings into his faithful trunk and pulled it downstairs with Hedwig's cage. Uncle Vernon and his Aunt Petunia were sitting quietly in the living room when he entered. They looked up expectantly upon his entrance and Harry muttered a quiet, "Thank you." Before throwing a handful of Floo powder into the broken fireplace (it hadn't been fixed) and clutched his luggage tightly.

Neither of his guardians muttered a word in response.

Harry looked around quickly, gave them a quick nod in goodbye and as he stepped into the flickering green flames he heard one last snore from Dudley before shouting, _"The Burrow!"_

A/N Please review if you find any mistakes/incorrect facts! Thanks for reading!


	3. Ron and Hermione

**Chapter 3**

"Harry dear! You're here! Oh, you've grown so much!" Mrs. Weasley fussed as soon as Harry had stumbled out of the fireplace coughing. He allowed himself to be hugged and greeted her warmly.

The plump women surveyed him and said, "You haven't eaten enough." He smiled knowingly and led his things up many steps to the top of the stairs. He deeply enjoyed not having to heave his things up the stairs anymore.

When at the top he knocked and only came in when he heard Ron call out, in case. He landed his luggage on the floor and turned to smile at his friends.

"Hey Harry! You're earlier than we expected!"

Ron and Hermione we sitting together on the edge of Ron's bed and holding hands.

"Did you get the owl?" Hermione asked. Harry nodded and sat in the only chair in the room.

"So what do you think?"

"About?"

Hermione sat up straighter and drew a piece of parchment out of her pocket.

"You may remember Sirius's brother Regulas?" Harry nodded, not know where this was going. "Well, I did some research on the Black family tree and visited Number 12 Grimmauld Place, and I have realized that-" She paused for effect, "R.A.B is Regulas Black."

Harry stared at her and Ron snorted. Glaring at Ron she continued, "Because Siruis and Regulas had an uncle - Arcturus. Sirius mentioned him once. Regulas Arcturus Black. R.A.B."

But Ron interrupted this train of thought and said loudly, "But of course Regulas couldn't have found out about the Horcruxes because, from what Sirius said, Regulas was an idiot that loved You-Know-Who!" Harry looked at both of them before finally saying, "You both have a point. But it doesn't really matter about R.A.B. He is dead now right? He destroyed the Horcrux. We need to find the other Horcruxes."

"But, we don't know that he destroyed it. Just that he was planning to!" Hermione protested after a pause.

Ron and Harry looked at each other and said nothing.

There was a knock at the door and Ginny came in. She looked directly at Ron and said clearly, "Mum wants you downstairs Ron." She did not look at or greet Harry. Harry felt his stomach jolt as he wondered whether she was angry at him.

Hermione looked at him sadly as Ginny and Ron left the room. Hermione said quietly, "She's really upset that you're leaving." Harry felt his stomach churn and he replied, "I guessed that much."

He reached inside his pocket and remembered the letter he had received from the Ministry of Magic. "Oh and I got a letter from the Ministry this morning. It's not that bad, read it yourself."

He handed the letter to Hermione.

"Umbridge! She's still at the Ministry after all that!" she exclaimed angrily.

Harry felt a nudge at his insides and he recognized it as a hint. "Look. Hermione. Can I ask you something?" She nodded, confused.

"Do you still miss Dumbledore?" Her expression softened and her voice was suddenly hardly audible, "Yes, but you must miss him more than us. But how could Snape-" She left her sentence unfinished as she flung her arms around Harry and sobbed.

Harry felt relieved that he had begun to deal with the issue, because it was a difficult one to overcome.

The door opened and Ron came in. Hermione was sobbing so loudly that she didn't notice and clutched him tigher. Harry tried to gesture with his eyes to Ron that it wasn't what it looked like but Ron glared at him and slammed the door behind him. Hermione broke apart from Harry and asked her eyes widened, "Was that...?" Harry nodded as she wiped her face hurriedly. They sat in silence after that, wondering what Ron was thinking.

After some time Harry was getting worried so he stood up and said, "I'm going to go find him." Hermione looked scared but he ignored her and left.

He found Ron sitting in the garden mumbling something that sounded like "I'm going to kill him..." over and over again. This wasn't very encouraging but Harry cleared his throat and said, "Ron."

But he could've been talking to the plants around him for all the response he received. He sat down next to him and waited. After a few moments of silence Ron clenched his fist and hit him. Harry stayed still and let Ron punch him a few times. He perfectly understood Ron. If he had discovered Ron with _his_ girlfriend he'd do the same. Except, after today he would probably hit Ron considerably lighter.

Ron stopped after he got bored with the lack of reactions and Harry knew that Ron would listen to him now.

"I wasn't trying to steal your girlfriend Ron." He watched his friend's face flush but he continued, "We were talking about Dumbledore. And she...well. You saw her..."

Ron groaned in understanding and Harry pressed on.

"Don't worry about it. I'd have done the same to you."

Ron grinned. "And you don't mind about me and...Hermione?"

Harry nodded reluctantly but added, "Just don't do the same thing you did with Lavender!"

Ron grinned sheepishly and they went back upstairs to join Hermione.

Somehow, Harry knew that regardless of his acceptance of the matter, Ron and Hermione's relationship meant that they were _going_ to become a nuisance.


	4. The Long Awaited Wedding

**Chapter 4 - **

"Ron! Get down here now! You need to try on your dress robes and make sure they fit!"

Ron smiled apologetically and excused himself politely before running downstairs and shouting,

"I'm coming Mum!"

The silence he left behind thickened as neither Hermione nor Harry could think of anything to say that didn't involve either Dumbledore or Ron.

"Um, care to explain R.A.B again?" Harry asked, pretending to be interested. Hermione nodded energetically and launched into her explanation,

"Well, as I said, I had been searching for matches to those initials for quite some time now, and decided that it was probably one of the Death Eaters, who were all supposedly purebloods. This reminded me of the tapestry that…Sirius had shown me two summers ago." Her pause at Sirius's name tied an uncomfortable knot in Harry's stomach but he motioned for her to continue.

"I visited Grimmauld Place with Professor Lupin and he let me stay with the tapestry alone while he wandered around. Some names had been blasted off the chart, so we can't be sure about _those_ but once I found Regulus – it fit perfectly!"

Harry sighed wearily and Hermione frowned.

"What?"

"Sirius-" Harry felt ill saying the name too often, "he mentioned that Regulus was killed for being cowardly. I have a feeling he would have mentioned if Regulus did something noble."

"Harry. You have to understand. Sirius hated his brother. So why would Regulus tell him anything about the Horcruxes when he knew he wouldn't be respected?"

A loud shout from downstairs halted the conversation,

"Oi! Hermione! Harry! Come on down! Ron's getting suspicious!"

They grabbed their dress robes and hurried down the stairs to find Ron blushing furiously in his frilly dress robes and Charlie laughing jovially. Mrs Weasley bustled in and grabbed Hermione by the arm and berated Charlie,

"I don't see why you're standing around doing nothing when you could be helping to organize the seating plan!"

Charlie grimaced and muttered, "I'm onto it Mum…"

Ron noticed the look of shock on Harry's face and laughed, "It's been like this for a week or so mate, apparently. Dad says he's made enough paper flowers to last three weddings."

"Paper flowers?"

Charlie leaned in and whispered,

"He's hopeless at everything else and was getting in the way, so Mum made him to make paper flowers. I dunno what she'll actually _do_ with them."

Harry held back a laugh as he saw Mr Weasley turn the corner. He rubbed his head irritably and scratched his ear.

"I've got 4,000 more flowers to make, I'm a busy man!"

Charlie followed after him, attempting to escape his mother's angry mutterings of 'sloth' leaving Harry and Ron to wait for Mrs Weasley to assign them a job to do.

"We have to talk after this wedding thing, okay?" Harry said quietly. Ron looked curious but held any thoughts he had to himself.

A loud shriek emmitted from the room Hermione had been pulled into and Ron sprang to his feet. Harry held him back and raised his eyebrows at him before saying,

"She's trying on her dress robes. She might now be, you know, wearing anything."

Ron grinned sheepishly.

"I know!"

"I doubt she'd be pleased."

"You never know mate."

Hermione came out wearing her dress robes, which still fit her from the Triwizard tournament, with her hair cascading down in its usual curls and the shriek was forgotton. Ron kissed her hand and whispered a compliment into her ear that Harry couldn't quite make out but it turned Hermione's face bright red. Ron's mother took Harry into the room considerably gentler than she had to the others and closed the door on the adoring couple.

"They are so sweet together!" she beamed before rubbing her hands together. "Now Harry, I assume you brought your dress robes with you?" He nodded and handed them to her.

"Do they still fit you? They looked lovely on you last time, matched your eyes!" Harry nodded again and she turned her eye upon his unruly hair. Her frown indicated that she wasn't pleased.

"Haven't you managed to flatten it somehow?"

"Never."

"Have you tried?"

"Not really." He admitted honestly.

She took out her wand and muttered a spell under her breath. Nothing happened, but Harry felt a slight tingle massage his scalp. Mrs Weasley accepted defeat and swept out, leaving him with the instructions to dress up and meet them in the garden.

Harry wondered why weddings were such a fuss and slipped into his bottle-green dress robes without further delay. They felt a bit shorter than last time, but still reached below his ankles. He scrubbed a bit of dirt off his trainers before relenting and transfiguring them into a more presentable pair of black shoes.

Once he was out in the garden he saw the entire Weasley family assembled in the garden and joined his friends, who were once again holding hands and smiling foolishly at each other.

"Now that we are all here!" announced Mrs Weasley with a kind smile at Harry, "We shall all help bring out the food and drink, before the guests arrive, _without_ any complaints Ginny." She took a look at a sundial that had been placed in the garden and shouted, "Go! We have ten minutes before the relatives come!"

Most of the assembled family apparated into the house, but Harry forgot about this and walked instead. He almost tripped over a tiny little girl who was running around happily gabbling in an unknown language. He brought out a platter of what he recognized as _bouillon_ and a stack of plates and wobbled outside carefully.

The garden was considerably busier than it had been a few minutes previously as it filled with witches and wizards who were unknown to him and he strained to find Hermione and Ron through the bustle. He spot them snogging behind a few bushes and sat down in a seat next to an extremely excited redheaded woman who kept pointing things out to an irritated man beside her.

"Look Harold! It's Ginerva! Look how she's grown! Oh isn't this wonderful! Our little Bill! Getting married!"

"Yes, now calm down dear, the service will begin soon."

"Oh! Look over there! Isn't that Fred?"

"No, that's George!"

"You could always tell them apart." She exclaimed admirably.

Harry hoped she wouldn't turn around and squeal, _"Oh Harold! It's HIM! Harry Potter!"_ and luck was on his side as Harold seemed to be correct about the service beginning. He couldn't spot Hermione and Ron among the seats, but felt a pang of loneliness as he realized that they weren't coming to sit with him.

The quiet muttering ceased and Harry was rather unpleasantly reminded of Dumbledore's funeral. The priest's ramblings sounded vaguely like the 'few words' that had been spoken for Dumbledore. It was just as boring.

He let his eyes wander over the scene as he recognized Bill, scars fading (slightly), hair trimmed (slightly) and in a new set of dress robes standing alongside the altar that he hadn't seen earlier. He tried to imagine Ron standing in his place and waiting for Hermione to walk up the aisle and shuddered.

The tiny girl that he had almost knocked over earlier skipped towards Bill throwing clumps of petals at the assembled audience and she gave the basket to Mrs Weasley before sitting down on an empty seat beside a peroxide blonde woman, who must have been Fleur's mother.

When he looked back at Bill, he noticed that Bill's eyes had become glazed over, so Harry looked back to see Fleur and her father (a brunette) making their way up the aisle. Upon seeing these two, Fleur's mother burst into tears and had to be comforted by the little flower-girl.

Once Fleur had reached Bill, he grasped her hands lovingly and her father sat down to console his wife. The priest read out their vows, they exchanged rings and then he announced the famous words,

"You may now kiss the bride."

The garden was silent for the first time in many years as both Bill and Fleur leaned forward and kissed. Fleur's younger sister let out a noise of disgust as they pulled apart and the crowd cheered. Harry couldn't help but notice that Ron and Hermione were probably still in the bushes together.

People went forward to congratulate the newly weds and Harry decided that he wouldn't be able to cope with much more of the bizarrely cheery atmosphere and he slipped back into the house. There were now paper flowers cluttering the floor and ceiling so he kicked a few out of his way bitterly.

As he made his way up the stairs, he heard floorboards creaking and heavy breathing coming from Ron's bedroom, so he turned around and headed back downstairs in repulsion. He wondered why Hermione, the cleverest witch in their year, had forgotten how to cast a silencing charm to prevent their moaning from echoing down the stairs.

He didn't even realize that their relationship was _that _serious.

A/N More coming soon! I've never been to a wedding before but I've heard about loads of them, I hope it was accurate enough. I'm not too sure about the lack of Mrs Weasley bustling about...


	5. The Dusty Room

Harry stepped outside into the garden again and bumped into a woman dressed entirely in white, who seemed to be beaming strangely. He stuttered an apology before being embraced in a heavily scented hug.

"'Arry! You came!"

Fleur Delacour kissed him on both cheeks and pushed forward the small flower-girl who he now realized had similar long silvery hair. Harry finally recognized her as Gabriele, Fleur's younger sister that he had 'saved' from drowning. She was wearing a golden bridesmaid dress and was blushing furiously.

"Bonjour..." she whispered quietly and Harry smiled at her gently, which caused her to duck down and run away into the large crowd surrounding them. He laughed as Fleur tittered disapprovingly.

"Ah, she iz so shy! 'ave you seen Bill?" As Harry shook his head he spot Fred and George and made his excuses to Fleur, not knowing what else to say to her. He hurried towards them and heard, "Where do you reckon our favourite little couple has got to, eh George?" Harry smirked took in their new robes – obvious signs of their shop's recent profits.

"What're you smirking about Potter?" asked George in an uncanny imitation of Draco Malfoy.

"I wouldn't go looking for them right now if I were you." He replied mysteriously.

"I see you've _bumped_ into them." George sniggered.

Fred and George exchanged knowing glances and Fred added,

"They're at it again aren't they?"

Harry nodded meekly and Fred stuck out his tongue.

"It's as if our ickly little Ronnikin's is trying to prove that he can get his fill if he tries!"

"Fred! Harry's too young for such information!"

"Point taken."

The twins burst into laughter and upset a lady nearby, who turned around to tell them off.

Harry wandered back into the crowd and realized that he no longer wanted to pretend that everything was all right. This wedding was a distraction. Everyone was ignoring the fact that people outside of this group were being killed right now and nobody was doing anything about it. He stormed back inside angrily and changed back into his 'Muggle' clothes. It was time to leave. He was wasting valuable time.

He stood at the foot of the stairs, ignored his friends' noises, and pointed his wand at the doorway muttering, "_Accio trunk."_

A loud bang certified that the door had broken down and a scream was emitted from Hermione, the desired reaction. Harry grabbed his trunk and spun on the spot concentrating on Number 12 Grimmauld Place.

He only just tolerated the discomfort of Apparation and felt himself land roughly on to floor in front of Number 11 Grimmauld Place. He looked around and was extremely grateful that there were no Muggles around. He didn't have the patience right now to deal with any Muggles.

Dragging his trunk over to the gap in between Number 11 and 13 (in case any of the Muggles had heard him Apparate) he watched Number 12's door reveal itself to him and barged in, slamming the door behind him. He ignored Sirius's mother's screams and levitated his trunk upstairs into Sirius's old bedroom.

Harry lay down on the large double bed and mentally kicked himself for being so impulsive. He hadn't thought about how much he needed Hermione's extensive knowledge. And Ron's loyal support. But didn't he have to right to be upset about his two closest friends pairing off and ignoring him? They wouldn't have wanted to come with him anyway. He had to do this on his own.

He wondered vaguely about whether he was alone in the house and decided to check because he had to start being more careful. And he couldn't stay here for much longer, he would be found. After searching the house quickly, he found himself in front of a gnarled wooden door that he had never been through before. Sirius had come out from it once, angrily, and taken Harry downstairs with him before he could get through, so he had naturally assumed that it wasn't his business.

But he could go in now. He was alone after all.

He took out his wand and whispered, _Alohomora_, and the door creaked open slowly. Harry peered into the room and coughed at the cloud of dust that had risen from the floor.

It was a room that had clearly not been in use for a very long time, there was a thick layer of dust covering most of the few objects there and spiders had been at work on the ceiling. Once his eyes had stopped stinging from the dust, Harry opened them and squinted around further. The bed's mattress was threadbare and the springs had forced their way through the thin silk that only remained in scraps. There were a few books and the mouldy remains of food hidden within the rusty springs and Harry _accioed_ these into his palm. Three items that flew out were rather light and two were heavier, but they were all too dirty to reveal what they actually were. Harry found a small leather bag underneath the bed that he slipped these into and resumed his search.

There were a great number of old textbooks and broken quills that made Harry wonder whether this had been Sirius's room before he came across a set of robes – with the Slytherin snake on the badge.

_Of course it's a snake_, he thought to himself, feeling rather like how he imagined Crabbe and Goyle must often feel. This ancient room had belonged to _Regulus_ Black. Not Sirius. R.A.B. He now understood why his instinct was telling him to salvage as much as he could from here, before somebody else did.

Harry ripped off the badge and slipped it into his bag of objects. His eyes swept over the room again and he was satisfied that he hadn't left anything behind. He kicked open the door and stepped back into the corridor. The house felt a lot more habitable after spending fifteen minutes in dust and filth.

He checked the time and realized that he had spent too long in this house, he was going to be tracked down. He tried to remember where he had left his trunk before pulling out his wand and muttering, _Accio trunk _for the second time in less than an hour. He had to get adjusted to using magic quickly; it would make things easier for him.

A flutter of some kind of creature reminded Harry that he had left Hedwig behind. But he knew that he couldn't go back for her right now because he had to leave and find somewhere to stay first. And even then, it would reveal his hiding place to summon an owl and cage through the countryside. Perhaps she would be looked after at the Burrow.

He wondered fleetingly whether Hermione and Ron had actually realized that he had left, or whether they were still 'making love'. The idea really pissed him off. They had better be worrying about him.

Turning to the matter at hand, Harry shrunk his trunk into a miniature version and slipped it into his pocket before trying to decide whether he would stay in the wizarding world or retreat to the Muggles.

_It didn't matter right now,_ he told himself. He could decide on the way.

It was going to be difficult finding the Horcuxes alone, but it wasn't as if he wanted to put anyone else in danger. Too many people had died protecting him from Voldemort: his parents, Sirius, Dumbledore. He didn't want to lose anyone else. He couldn't risk losing the only friends he had. It was just a convenient excuse that Ron and Hermione wouldn't be useful, it was a lie, and he knew it was. But he had to keep them away from him – whether it involved running away from them or simply pissing Ron off enough, he would have to do it to keep them safe.

Harry cleared his head of his thoughts and took out his trunk again. He opened it gingerly and pulled out his Invisibility Cloak and Firebolt. They increased in size as he took them out and he put his trunk back. The house was probably being watched by someone by now. He had been stupid enough to walk into it once, but he wouldn't be seen walking out. It was probably not as protected as it had been when Dumbledore was alive.

He stepped into the nearest room, a bathroom. It had a large window, which was a bonus, as he planned on flying out. He wished that Mad-Eye Moody had taught him how to do a good Disillusionment charm, and he had a sneaking suspicion that Hermione could perform them, but it was too late for that now. He pulled his Cloak tightly over himself and bound it in place by a couple of simple binding charms before realizing that he would be visible from underneath, and he would have to fly very low.

This was no problem for him at the moment, so he mounted his broom and pushed open the window. He hoped that this wouldn't turn out to be one of the biggest regrets of his life and he kicked off into the air.

He dived downwards into the garden and swerved to avoid smashing into the ground. He wondered what to do next. He couldn't fly on the roads and he couldn't fly very high up. Unless, he flew above the clouds. But he didn't have any warm clothes, and he didn't have much money either now that he considered the problem, so he had to fly back up to the window (which he had foolishly left open) and let himself back in.

Harry felt like a complete failure, but he didn't want to have to go back to Hermione and Ron. He could do this on his own. He just needed to think a bit more.

He could go to Diagon Alley, get some money out from Gringotts, and perhaps buy a few helpful potions. Harry doubted that anything would go wrong if he went to Diagon Alley. If he took his Cloak, he wouldn't have to stay in the public eye too often, and he could also avoid anyone looking for him.

Harry Potter was a genius. Who needed Hermione Granger?

His broom was returned to the trunk, the Cloak remained on and Harry wandered downstairs happily humming, feeling as if nothing could possibly go wrong now. He entered the kitchen and walked over to the fireplace before hearing an annoyed voice mutter, "Where the hell could he be?"

It was Ron. He walked into the kitchen wearing a strange trenchcoat and jeans. He looked around halfheartedly and called out, "Hermione, I don't think he's here!"

Harry felt rather clever until she replied, "He must have come here. It's what he would naturally do! And remember he has his Invisibility Cloak with him. He left nothing behind."

Ron groaned, expressing Harry's feelings perfectly, before complaining, "That's not fucking fair! How can we find him with that cloak! He might have gone to Diagon Alley like you said he would!"

His heart sank as his genius was revealed as more stupidity. Her reply was closer this time, "That's why we sent Fred and George to their shop and Lupin to look for him near Gringotts. We shouldn't have wasted time checking with his aunt and uncle…"

"Diagon Alley? He isn't stupid! He won't have gone there! And I doubt he will be here either. Knowing Harry, he's done something absolutely brilliant. Hey! He could've gone and hid in Sirius's old cave! Or in the Shrieking Shack!"

_Ron's expectations of me are obviously too high,_ Harry thought bitterly as he shuffled silently into the corner, hoping for them to reveal an idea that he may be able to use.

Hermione paced in, she was obviously frustrated and she had tied her hair back roughly. She had changed into a Muggle set of clothing too.

"No! Ron, he must be in here. There must be some trace of him being here! We just have to look harder. I wonder if _Aparecium_would work…"

She muttered her spell and was disappointed. Harry wondered how he could escape from them when they had more spells than he did.

"Think Ron. What did he say he was going to do?"

It hit Hermione and Harry at the same time that he had said he wanted to visit his parent's house, in Godric's Hollow. He hoped that they would follow the bait and leave. After Hermione mentioned it aloud, Ron didn't look convinced, but Hermione kissed his cheek quickly and said,

"He _will _be there. I'm sure of it. Come on!"

Once they had apparated with a loud crack, Harry felt a wave of superiority. He now knew where they were, and which places to avoid. Harry Potter was a lucky bastard.

He stood up and opened an elegantly crafted pot that he knew was full with Floo Powder. He took a pinch, sealed it and put the entire pot into his trunk for future use.

He dropped it into the flames and shouted,

"Diagon Alley."

Fuck Fred, George and Lupin. He had an Invisibility Cloak and they didn't.


	6. Diagon Alley

When Harry burst into an almost empty street, he was momentarily disorientated, because he had never used this entrance to Dia

A/N Sorry for the long wait, I've been very busy with my studies! But now that it's the holidays, I have more time and hopefully I can write some more. (Although no promises, as I have lots of holiday work too)

Meanwhile, thank you for all your helpful reviews! Some people mentioned that Ron and Hermione rushed their relationship in a OOC way, but I always thought that they would have hidden their relationship from Harry – perhaps Hermione was afraid of hurting him. Remember, Harry just assumed, a bit hot-headedly as he does, that they were having sex, but they weren't really.

I'll keep writing now! Happy reading!

**Chapter 6**

When Harry burst into an almost empty street, he was momentarily disorientated, because he had never used this entrance to Diagon Alley before. The last time he had used Floo Powder, he ended up in Borgin and Burkes, a shop in Knockturn Alley. But this time it had expelled him from a fireplace outside the Post Office, which seemed to be one of the only shops that remained open.

_Keep an eye out for Fred and George,_ he reminded himself before setting off in the opposite direction to the trickle of wary shoppers. The only person that wasn't scuttling around was an old man resting on a bench. He seemed out of breath and was holding his ribs delicately. Harry noticed that nobody was stopping to help him and hoped he would be all right. There was nothing he could do for him anyway.

Yet something was compelling about this man. His robes were tattered and his hair was wispy and falling out in clumps. Harry pulled a Gallon out of his pocket and slipped it into the man's pocket.

Satisfied that he had done his best, Harry moved on through the frosty atmosphere towards Gringotts. He watched a small rat skulk in the shadows and was reminded of Wormtail. But this rat was thinner, it had no tail. He almost laughed as he thought about how Wormtail might have a silver paw to add to his rat's form now.

The rat froze and seemed to be struggling against an invisible force that made Harry stop in his tracks. A muttered voice whispered triumphantly, "I think I've got him Ginny!" and Fred Weasley slipped out and spot the rat.

"Shit."

"What is it?"

"It's just a rat. But we'll get him, don't worry Gin."

He freed the rat and lay the barrier down again before returning to Ginny. Harry felt touched that Ginny was worried about him, but was also relieved that the rat had fallen victim to this trap instead of himself. He picked up the rat and stroked it, to calm it down. It could help him get to Gringotts.

But what should he do about this barrier? He didn't know whether he could fly over it and if he broke it, Fred would probably be warned. Then it hit him. If the rat got caught by the barrier again, the barrier would be stopped for a minute, for the rat to be set free. During this break, Harry could slip through untouched.

Setting the rat down again and prodding it back into the right direction, he waited until it had frozen again for Fred's voice.

"Stay here. It might be him."

As he saw the rat again Fred let out a sigh before exclaiming, "How many rats do we have here? It's filthy. You shouldn't sit on the floor Gin." He released the rat and Harry slipped through, following it, "You don't know what you could catch from them."

Harry hoped that George's trap wasn't any more difficult, because all he had to protect himself was really a rat and an Invisibility Cloak. As he turned another corner, he recognised Fortesque's closed Ice Cream shop and knew that he didn't have far to go, until he finally reached his destination. And Lupin, of course.

He was the only person heading towards it, which was slightly unnerving, because it meant that Lupin could have blocked any possible entrance to it. For all he knew, he could be heading straight into an elaborate trap.

But he could was supposed to have got stuck in Fred's trap. They couldn't have guessed he would make it through undetected, could they? Harry was starting to feel slightly paranoid, as the silence of what was once a busy street continued eerily.

He watched the rat turn into an alleyway and regretted letting it go. But would they use the same trick twice? Or would he need some kind of password to pass by? He couldn't really imagine what he'd have to do now.

Gringotts was in sight now and he could see a few witches and wizards passing inside, without any trouble. He stepped behind a plump wizard and stepped through the doors with him, shocked to have made it this far. He scouted the room quickly for signs of Lupin or his trap and found him sitting down, looking bored. He was watching the desk as if waiting for Harry to reveal himself.

This stunned Harry's thoughts as he understood that there must be a reason for this. Why would Harry possibly walk up to the desk, undisguised, and wait to be caught?

How else could he get his money out?

He felt stupid again. Why hadn't he realised that he wouldn't be let into his vault if he was invisible. Harry pushed his way out of the room and almost knocked a thin lady over, but pulled her back up before her husband turned around and noticed. He slipped out again behind an old woman and felt a hand grab his wrist strongly. He was pulled away from the other people and recognised Lupin's satisfied smile.

"Hello Harry."

He contemplated whether he had any reason not to reply, and decided that it wouldn't set him back any further.

"How did you see me?"

Lupin chuckled and muttered, "I saw the woman perform a strange feat of acrobatics and after all the experience I've had with that cloak, I had a feeling that you were involved. You also disturbed the motion in the crowd considerably. James often made that mistake."

His smile faded away and his face grew sterner.

"More importantly, why did you leave the Burrow? You know that it isn't safe for you to wander around on your own. Your friends are all worried about you."

"That doesn't matter."

He looked weary, but not surprised that Harry didn't want to tell him. He ran his free hand through his hair and continued,

"I'm going to take you back, Mrs Weasley is frantic, as Ron and Hermione didn't inform anyone until after Bill and Fleur had left for their honeymoon. You'll have to explain somehow."

"I don't care. I'm not going back."

Harry noticed that the force on his wrist had slackened and he ripped it out of Lupin's grasp and ducked down as Lupin groped around for him.

"Harry! Let me finish!"

He knew better than to reply this time so he stayed sitting against a wall, watching his former teacher try to detect him from the people's movements in the crowd. Fortunately, Lupin soon realised that he was probably gone, so he stopped and leaned back against the wall.

"He'll be back." Lupin muttered to himself softly. More than a trace of worry lined his worn face and Harry felt ashamed for making this man's life more difficult. But before Harry could think any deeper about Lupin and his troubles, the giant doors of Gringotts Bank crashed open and several Death Eaters burst in.


	7. Greetings at Godric's Hollow

Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

"I'm worried about him." Hermione said quietly, as they stood outside the deserted wreck of Godric's Hollow. She felt wrong, standing outside, while Harry may not have even been here himself yet.

"About who?" Ron asked, as he was hardly listening. He too, felt distinctly as though he did not have the right to be here without Harry.

"Harry."

"What?"

"I'm worried about him." she said again.

"Oh right. Yeah. Me too."

It was a surprise to them that despite all the warmth that the wizarding world felt towards Harry Potter, nobody cared enough to clean away the rubble left behind. There were two simple graves assembled nearby, but there were no signs of any recent visits or of anyone at all. The entire area was overgrown with tangled weeds and local flowers. Ron thought it slightly rude that not even Dumbledore considered it. He voiced this aloud to Hermione, but she disagreed with him.

"I think that Harry would like to see it as it is now. Before anyone cleaned it up. That would be trying to cover up the past wouldn't it? And Dumbledore knew better than to interfere with it."

Ron huffed, "But there's a difference to cleaning the weeds and rebuilding the entire place, isn't there? This just looks as though nobody cares, like it's not important."

"There's a war going on Ron. I think people have a bit more going on in their minds." she reminded him.

"The war's only started recently. Nobody came before that."

"Nobody likes returning to old memories. And I'm sure Harry wouldn't mind."

"But-"

Hermione put a finger to his lips and motioned towards the house. "If Harry had been here, he would have heard us by now. We have to look around quickly, for signs if he's been here, and then go back to the Burrow to tell the others."

But she needed have bothered speaking; Ron was silent and staring down at her finger while his ears heated up. He nodded briefly and followed her inside.

In an instant, two Death Eaters had their wands pointed at the two receptionist goblins and the third smirked down at Lupin. Harry slipped his wand out quietly and pointed his wand at the third Death Eater, waiting for it to speak.

When it, he recognised the voice instantly as Bellatrix Lestrange, and he had to restrain himself from attacking her. She might have some useful information that Lupin could retrieve.

"Remus Lupin, what a pleasure."

She lifted her wand and Harry changed his mind, he wasn't in the mood to listen to her boasting. He whispered, "_Stupefy."_ A few sparks shot from his wand, which alerted Lupin to his presence, before he realised he would have to say it louder.

"_Stupefy!_" Harry turned quickly, threw Lupin his wand and then shouted again, "_Stupefy!_" The three Death Eaters were still. Lupin quickly bound them (with similar vines as had been used to carry Snape, a few years ago, Harry recognised) Harry also realised that he would have to leave again, before Lupin could complain.

He turned on the spot and apparated to Godric's Hollow.

A loud crack resonated in the air as Hermione and Ron jumped up from the patch of grass they had been resting on after their scouring of the broken home.

"Stay quiet." Hermione whispered. Her eyes swept across the empty road in front of them, searching for a clue.

Harry spot them immediately: Ron's crop of orange hair, her bushy tangle, and the house. The ex-house, rather. He was shocked to find it in such a dismal condition, but knew he had no time to consider it now. His friends were standing mere metres away from his parent's graves.

What had he been thinking? Why on earth did he come here? He knew they would be here.

"Harry." Hermione said loudly. "I know it's you. We just want to talk to you."

"I think he knows that." Ron muttered.

"Harry?"

A little chat wouldn't hurt. Would it? They couldn't force him to come back. And he could mislead them again. Tell them that he's going to Australia or something. To find the Ashes, which could be a Horcrux.

He stopped himself. Ron snorted.

"He's not here."

"Then who was that?"

"I don't care. It wasn't Harry. It was the gardeners, and about time."

"Ron! Seriously."

Hermione looked away from the patch of dusty road she had imagined Harry standing at. Ron's arms were crossed stubbornly and he was staring down at his feet, grinding his teeth.

"Why should we have to go running after him? He doesn't want us hanging around him. He made his point clear Hermione. If he doesn't want to be our friend anymore, then we have to accept that."

It seemed that, once more, Ron had completely missed the point. But Harry was grateful for the distraction, as Hermione seemed to have momentarily forgotten about talking to Harry.

"What? He's our friend. Don't be ridiculous! He needs our help. He can't do this on his own and he knows that."

"He's selfish. That's what. He doesn't have the slightest concern about us."

"Ron…"

Hermione watched his face with disbelief.

"You're a coward." She stated.

"What?! You too? I'm not going to waste my time looking for him. That's all. This is stupid, and I'm done here."

She watched as Ron apparated away in anger, presumably to the Burrow. Her eyes returned to the dusty patch of road and she sat down again, to think.

Harry once more, found himself in a position where he had disappointed someone, and could easily fix things. He started walking towards her and then took off his cloak.

"I'm sorry about that, Hermione."

"Harry." She whispered, as though Ron had actually convinced her that it really had been the gardeners after all.

A/N Please review, I'd like to know what you thought, and of course, it's nice to know that SOMEONE is actually reading this!

Thank you to everyone who's already done so!

Gala xxx


End file.
